‘Everything I went through was worth it’

In front of an audience of nearly 500 friends, family members, club supporters and a star-studded judge panel, emotions overtook Demery, who learned she would attend her first year of college tuition free.

Golden State Warriors superstar Kevin Durant and his business partner Rich Kleiman announced during the Wednesday, Feb. 7 ceremony in East Palo Alto they intended to pay one year of college fees for all four finalists competing for the award.

“I feel like everything I went through was worth it,” said Demery, a San Francisco resident and East Palo Alto Academy student, after her victory.

Demery won her recognition ahead of fellow finalists Joselin Quinteros, Dezmond Frazier and Magali Pineda, all members of the clubs spanning the southern region of San Mateo County in Redwood City, East Menlo Park and East Palo Alto.

While recognizing the persistence, strength and tremendous character shared by each contestant who presented their life story, Kleiman said Demery’s commitment to community service set her apart from her peers.

“It was her accomplishments and the way she juggled it all,” said Kleiman, who joined Durant, Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative’s Jim Shelton as well as journalist and educator Esther Wojcicki as event judges.

The task management talent to which he referred was Demery’s ability to earn a 3.7 GPA, while holding a job, founding a black student union and critical feminists club at her school, arranging lectures and playing sports amidst a chaotic personal life.

Lena Potts, a teacher at the East Palo Alto club who works with Demery, said days prior to the event she is also frequently overwhelmed while witnessing the development of the contestants.

“We cry because it is emotional to see students who start out as kids, and they are not kids anymore,” she said. “To see that growth and to see what the process does to encourage that growth on such a public and intense scale, they have to do a lot and grow up fast and do it well.”

Demery spent the Monday afternoon before the event practicing her speech with Quinteros, as the two grappled with the challenges of overcoming public speaking fear.

“I’ve never been the type to express myself in an emotional way, because I’m not the type to cry. I don’t like it,” said Quinteros, 18, of Redwood City. “But here I’ve shed tears with the staff because I’ve got so close with them. Now I’m doing a speech Wednesday about my life. I know if I hadn’t got into the Boys and Girls Club, I wouldn’t have this experience.”

Despite her best efforts, Quinteros’ composure briefly cracked during the competition while detailing her wishes to one day own a home similar to those in Atherton or Palo Alto she cleans with her immigrant mother.

She saved face, but that not have been possible without Demery recognizing her friend faltering and delivering a Kleenex at the last moment, helping Quinteros push away the emotions and finish her speech.

Such signs of solidarity and support were common throughout the night, as the four finalists elatedly jumped into each other’s arms and celebrated upon finding their college costs would be covered.

Following the event, amidst the crowd swarming for shots at celebrity selfies and handshakes, Frazier’s mother Chia Ogala tracked down Durant to express her gratitude. The diminutive mom introduced herself and the slender superstar offered a hug.

“I’m flabbergasted,” said Ogala, summarizing the night’s events.

For Demery, more opportunities are ahead, as she will advance to the next round of competition in pursuit of becoming the national club’s Youth of the Year. And while she struggled to find the words in the immediate wake of her victory to assess what’s next, the final words of her winning speech left no uncertainty.

“The Boys and Girls Club allows me to raise my voice to show young black girls in my community that they too can pursue music, attend a four-year university and feel more effervescent than ever,” she said. “They helped me understand that I am my pain, and so much more. I am proud of my family, my community and the club. I cannot wait for all the growth ahead of me. I am dreaming. Who says the dream has to end?”

austin@smdailyjournal.com

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